Micro-influencers are at profound risk of experiencing anxiety and mental health problems as a result of the pressures they face online, experts warn.

The description covers people who are popular enough on apps such as Instagram to earn money from brands for promoting products but have fewer than 10,000 followers.

Elvira Bolat and Parisa Gilani, of Bournemouth University, interviewed 12 micro-influencers in the town, who mostly post pictures showing their lifestyles and interests such as food or fashion. The micro-influencers typically started out by blogging about their hobbies, generating a number of “likes” and followers, which led to a boost in self-confidence and motivated them to keep posting.

However, writing in The Conversation, the researchers said: “They soon find themselves dependent on the number